MTA board criticized by one of its members for lack of diversity

By Clayton Guse

|New York Daily News|

Mar 01, 2019 | 7:20 PM

Veronica Vanterpool with former MTA board member Ira Greenberg. Veronica's, one of three people of color on the board, said at the group’s meeting Wednesday. “We need different types of people sitting at this table that are not just representing our traditional areas of expertise (Aaron Showalter/New York Daily News)

They’re white, they’re powerful, and they oversee the largest public transportation network on the continent.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority board caught flack last week from one of its members who said the team that leads the authority does not accurately represent the riding public.

Advertisement

“We need our elected officials to recommend members to this board that are more diverse than they have been,” Veronica Vanterpool, one of three people of color on the board, said at the group’s meeting Wednesday. “We need different types of people sitting at this table that are not just representing our traditional areas of expertise…That is true reform.”

Vanterpool, a Puerto Rican woman from the Bronx, was one of three women on the board until Sarah Feinberg was appointed last month. The other 15 people who hold voting or non-voting seats on the board are men, 13 of whom are white.

“Veronica Vanterpool’s comments at the MTA board meeting Wednesday were right on the money,” said Carl Weisbrod, an MTA board member recommended by Mayor de Blasio. He noted that the mayor, who also recommended Vanterpool, is responsible for most of the board’s diversity. David Jones, who is black, and Department of Transportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg, a woman, were also recommended by de Blasio.

Vanterpool’s made her comments after David Mack, 77, was appointed to the board as Nassau County’s representative. He previously held a seat on the board.

“David Mack fits the same profile that we’ve seen for decades on the board,” Vanterpool told The News.

The longtime transit advocate also thinks the board fails to recognize the experiences of the 10 million people who rely on public transit in and around New York City. A majority of the board have backgrounds in politics, law or real estate.

“With great respect for his [Mack’s] expertise, we need to start looking at diversity across a lot of different areas, not just ethnic, but also age and expertise,” she said. “The advocacy community at large, good government groups, transit advocates are not well-represented [on the board]. Technology is not represented on the board…We could use someone with real budget expertise as a board member.”

MTA board members are approved by the governor. The mayor recommends four, the governor recommends six and the remainder are recommended by a collection of suburban and union representatives. Gov. Cuomo has yet to appoint a new chair for the board since Joe Lohta resigned in November. Fernando Ferrer is acting chairman.

“Since Day One Gov. Cuomo has shown an unwavering commitment to equal opportunity in all his statewide appointments,” said Cuomo spokesman Patrick Muncie. “We have and will continue to solicit qualified candidates for board seats that reflect the diversity of New York State.”

But some advocates say real change will only come when mandated by law.

Nick Sifuentes, who succeeded Vanterpool as executive director at Tri-State Transportation Campaign, said the MTA board’s lack of diversity was the result of lack of due diligence by elected officials.

Sifuentes pointed to reforms New Jersey Transit last year by Garden State lawmakers, including statutes requiring its board members to represent a diverse group of regions and backgrounds.

Last week Cuomo and de Blasio said they want to institute a six-person oversight panel at the MTA that would include two rider representatives and people with expertise in fields like engineering, public finance and transportation.

“Elected officials need to have the confidence to appoint independent-minded board members who’ll put riders’ needs first,” said TransitCenter spokesman Ben Fried. “With more people like Veronica who are steeped in policy and the first-hand experience of riding transit, the board will steer the MTA in a better direction for riders.”